The Need for Spiritual Renewal

MEMORY SELECTION: “The God of heaven, he will prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and build.” —Nehemiah 2:20

SELECTED SCRIPTURE: Nehemiah 1:1-6; 8:9-12

RETURNING to the devastated city of Jerusalem was a hardship for those Jews who accepted the call to return to the land of their fathers. It required the rebuilding of the inner lives of the people as well as the restoring of the physical ruins of the city.

When we turn to the recorded account we read: “The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace, that Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.”—Neh. 1:1-3

Nehemiah was a Jew who remained in Babylon. He was a cupbearer for King Artaxerxes. Nehemiah cared deeply for the traditions of his people, and he had a great love for God. He had a relative in Jerusalem who came to Babylon with the disturbing news of the hardships of those who had gone back to the land of Israel. It must have been very distressing to learn that Jerusalem was a city without walls, for in ancient times cities without walls and gates for protection faced great hardship from marauding raiders. The walls were also a symbol of the strength of the city.

The news touched Nehemiah’s heart. He said, “And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, and said, I beseech thee, O Lord God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments: let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father’s house have sinned.” (1:4-6) For the entire prayer see vss. 5-11.

Nehemiah felt the call to do something for the children of Israel in Jerusalem, but it was first necessary to convince the king that he should be released from his duties as cupbearer. The king noticed his sadness and said, “Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart.” Nehemiah went on to say: “Then I was very sore afraid, and said unto the king, Let the king live forever: why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire?”—2:2,3

Then Nehemiah requested that the king permit him to go to the province, with authority to rebuild Jerusalem. He also asked for wood from the king’s forest for use in the construction of the gates and of the wall of the city and for his own home. The king granted all that he requested.

When Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem, he carried with him the king’s papers authorizing him to serve as governor. He then sought the support of priests, nobles, and officials in an effort to get the work of construction under way. He pointed out to them the need to rebuild without delay. “Then said I unto them, Ye see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire: come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach.”—2:17

The people reacted enthusiastically to Nehemiah’s call. With good response the walls of Jerusalem were completed in a very short time.

Word of Nehemiah’s success spread rapidly to the neighboring nations. Opposition developed, due partly to misunderstanding by some who did not know that Nehemiah acted by special provision from the king. Others, perhaps, felt that his presence was a threat to their influence. But God’s hand was with the children of Israel.

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